NUMBER 13-15-00141-CR
COURT OF APPEALS
THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS
CORPUS CHRISTI - EDINBURG
____________________________________________________________
TRINIDAD GEORGE PEREZ, Appellant,
v.
THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee.
____________________________________________________________
On appeal from the 24th District Court
of Victoria County, Texas.
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MEMORANDUM OPINION
Before Justices Garza, Benavides, and Perkes
Memorandum Opinion Per Curiam
Appellant, Trinidad George Perez, appeals from a denial of his motion for DNA
testing. We dismiss the appeal for want of jurisdiction.
The record before this court reflects that the trial court signed the order denying
motion for post-conviction DNA testing on September 25, 2014, and that appellant filed
his pro se notice of appeal on November 10, 2014. On March 30, 2015, the Clerk of this
Court notified appellant that it appeared that the appeal was not timely perfected. The
Clerk further advised appellant that the appeal would be dismissed if the defect was not
corrected within ten days from the date of receipt of the Court’s directive. Appellant has
not responded to the Court’s notice.
An appeal from a denial of a motion for DNA testing is treated in the same manner
as an appeal of any other criminal matter. See TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. ANN. art. 64.05
(Vernon Supp. 2005). Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 26.2 provides that an appeal
is perfected when notice of appeal is filed within thirty days after the day the trial court
enters an appealable order. TEX. R. APP. P. 26.2(a)(1). The time within which to file the
notice may be enlarged if, within fifteen days after the deadline for filing the notice, the
party files the notice of appeal and a motion complying with Rule 10.5(b) of the Texas
Rules of Appellate Procedure. See TEX. R. APP. P. 26.3.
Appellant’s notice of appeal was due to have been filed on or before October 27,
2015.1 See TEX. R. APP. P. 26.2(a)(2). Although the notice of appeal herein was filed
within the fifteen day time period, no such motion for extension of time was filed within
the fifteen day time period. See id. 26.2(a)(2).
This Court's appellate jurisdiction in a criminal case is invoked by a timely filed
notice of appeal. Olivo v. State, 918 S.W.2d 519, 522 (Tex. Crim. App. 1996). Absent
a timely filed notice of appeal, a court of appeals does not obtain jurisdiction to address
1
Because the thirtieth day fell on a Saturday, appellant had until the following Monday, October 27, 2014
to file the notice of appeal. See TEX. R. APP. P. 4.1.
2
the merits of the appeal in a criminal case and can take no action other than to dismiss
the appeal for want of jurisdiction. Slaton v. State, 981 S.W.2d 208, 210 (Tex. Crim. App.
1998). Appellant may be entitled to an out-of-time appeal by filing a post-conviction writ
of habeas corpus returnable to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals; however, the
availability of that remedy is beyond the jurisdiction of this Court. See TEX. CODE CRIM.
PROC. ANN. art. 11.07, § 3(a) (Vernon 2005); see also Ex parte Garcia, 988 S.W.2d 240
(Tex. Crim. App. 1999). Accordingly, the appeal is DISMISSED FOR WANT OF
JURISDICTION.
PER CURIAM
Do not publish.
See TEX. R. APP. P. 47.2(b).
Delivered and filed the
30th day of April, 2015.
3